Pictured Andy Symons, BMFA Club Support Officer and Richard Wilkins, Retford Model Flying Club
Thank you to everyone that came along to the Midland area first aid evening hosted by Retford MFC. Clubs from both Midland & Northern areas were in attendance crossing borders was not a problem.
The event was organised after reading about injury reports in the BMFA news, and the following questions was asked. Would club members know what to do or would they rely on other members knowing how to react and maybe save a life?
It was quickly realised that it’s not just wounds that could be an issue, cardiac arrest or strokes can occur at anytime. We have all seen the stroke adverts for FAST but what can you do to help?
With the subject in mind Midland Area looked for a club willing to host a first aid evening, Retford had a venue and a willing member to give a talk on first aid retired Doctor Richard Wilkins.
With the venue booked Midland area secretary Alf Tunnicliffe offered to supply a pie & pea meal to everyone attending.
Andy Symons Club Support Officer was approached for help with support on the BMFA face book pages, Andy came along to the event to answer any BMFA related questions and enjoy the Midland Area hospitality.
The talk was done via a power point presentation that can be Downloaded here as a Powerpoint , giving any club the possibly of running their own first aid night so below is a brief outline of the evening
The evening started with
How clubs can protect its members before an incident happens.
Register your club with the ambulance service so they would know an exact location. Fast response time could save a life!
Make sure the grid location is available at all times especially if your field is in a remote location
Not all hospitals have an A&E where is your nearest, it could be quicker than waiting for an ambulance.
Where is the nearest defibrillator location the 999 centre will tell you where and what to do but it’s a head start if you know where to look.
Carry a torch if it’s a winter’s afternoon
Fully charged phone
You can fly alone but have you ever tried to bandage yourself, use a mobile phone, and pack all the gear away before you fall unconscious.
Check your clubs first aid kit has been brought up to date and contains a good supply of dressings.
If there is no clubhouse does every member have a car first aid kit.
Set up a day of the week club and encourage pilots to communicate avoiding solo flying
First aid in the event of digit injury
Keep calm
Organise offers of help – call 999
First aid kit
Plenty of bandages for compression
Keep any severed items in a clean plastic bag
Keep the arm above heart level
You know where A & E located, would it be faster by car or wait for an ambulance
Nil by mouth there may be an operation required
Cardiac arrest and strokes or accidents
First call 999 or 112
Strokes and care during the event and what to do next including how to get the member into the recovery position was demonstrated.
The operator will tell you what to do if you require a defibrillator
A defibrillator looks complicated but is easy to use as it gives instructions as to what to do
Make sure the injured party is safe (could have collapsed on a runway )
Cardiac arrest compressions and air intake
The area has been contacted by other clubs who are looking to follow Midland Areas initative and run a First Aid Evening to help our presentation is available on the
Midland Area website: www.midland.bmfa.org
A number of subjects were covered during the evening so everyone in the room was updated to
“WHAT HAPPENS NEXT “
All attendees went home with new or refreshed knowledge of what to do to help if an incident occurred
Knowledge is power so use it to benefit others.
Due to time constraints Richard has agreed by popular demand to return to the stage with a
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT part 2
Subscribe to the Midland Area website to be kept up to date with latest news
The above is a brief resume of the talk.
